Thick & Chunky Tomato Sauce from Scratch

At the end of August, without fail, I get this crazy urge to organize, declutter, and donate things. The rest of the year I’m usually content to overlook my own chaos and disorganization, but once the back to school season hits, I turn into that domestic goddess I always wanted to be. I can do anything! Even if it doesn’t last very long, it feels good to start a new season with a clean slate.

Eric has always been the tidy, organizer in our relationship, so whenever he sees me tearing stuff apart he follows suit creating an equally large mess on the floor beside me. A natural born organizer can never pass up the chance to organize, you know? So this past weekend we spent a full day giving our office an overhaul, which led to furniture reorganization, which led to an Ikea trip to buy a cabinet. Why does organization always seem to lead to an Ikea trip? And more importantly, why do we insist on going the busiest weekend of the year? We are suckers.

Feeling on top of the world after our office clean-up, we went through the bedroom closet and donated a bag of clothing and then we semi-solved my kitchen storage issues. Total organizer’s high. I can see why some people become addicted to organizing. If only it would rub off on me a bit longer.

This is the year I change for the better and stay organized. I say this every September. Oh well.

In food related news, I don’t know why it took me so long to make my own tomato sauce from scratch. Shame on me! I don’t want to jinx it, but I feel like my kitchen mojo is back now that I’m only creating recipes for the blog again. It’s such a great feeling not to be zapped of creativity. I just have all this renewed energy to create, create, create.

The secret to this sauce? Sun-dried tomatoes. Gosh, I love them so. They turn a run of the mill fresh tomato sauce into a rich and creamy concentrated sauce with so much depth of flavour. I really couldn’t believe the difference in taste before and after adding them in. Instead of just stirring the chopped sundried tomatoes into the sauce, I decided to puree them and emulsify their flavour throughout. Oh my lanta. Once I stirred the sun-dried mixture back into the sauce it was transformed into something only dreams are made of. You really have to try this!

4.8 from 11 reviews

Thick & Chunky Tomato Sauce from Scratch

A few simple ingredients can create the most delightful homemade tomato sauce! The secret to this recipe is blending sun-dried tomatoes with a scoop of sauce and then stirring it back into the pot. The result is a thick and creamy tomato sauce with a ton of flavour unlike any other tomato sauce. There's no need to skin the tomatoes for this recipe, but I like to quickly discard the seeds before using. Chop the tomato into 4-5 large wedges and then push the seeds out from both sides and discard. Proceed with dicing as usual. If you don't have oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, feel free to use dried - but be sure to soak them in water until soft and drain before use. You might want to bump up the olive oil to 1.5 tablespoons to make up for the reduction in oil. Lastly, this batch only makes 1 & 1/4 cups - I would suggest doubling it because it doesn't last long!

For the noodles:

Directions:

Add the oil, onion, and garlic into a medium pot and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent.

Stir in the diced tomatoes and increase heat to high-medium to bring to a low boil. When the mixture boils, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 15 minutes, uncovered, until most of the water cooks off. Watch closely, reducing heat if necessary and stirring often.

Add sun-dried tomatoes into a food processor along with a ladle of the tomato sauce. Process until mostly smooth. Stir this mixture back into the tomato sauce in the pot.

Stir in the minced basil, oregano, salt, and pepper, and optional red pepper flakes to taste. Continue cooking until thickened to your liking and then remove from heat.

I love that you spiralized the zucchini- and this sauce looks delicious! I love making my own sauce and adding whatever fresh herbs I can get my hands on, pureed veggies, and ground up almonds for that meaty texture I sometimes miss from red sauce!

Whenever we have fresh tomatoes on hand, we make fresh tomato sauce, nothing can beat that. I’ve never tried adding sun dried tomatoes though, so I’ll make sure that your tip gets some follow-up ;-) Since I love pesto made of sun dried tomatoes, I think I’ll love it in regular tomato sauce to!

Love, love, love sun-dried tomatoes! On a salad, in your Goddess Bowl, in tomato sauce, etc.! Had something like this the other night, straight from the garden, complete with some additional sautéed eggplant, topped with some nutritional yeast and toasted walnuts – superb!

Loving the daily posts :) So exciting to see a new delicious recipe that I can’t wait to make every day! So many store bought tomato sauces are loaded with unnecessary ingredients…homemade really is the best (especially with this recipe!!).

Every artist goes through a block especially when they need lots of content; but at least your back! I thought I was the only one still obsessed with tomatoes I love a good homemade sauce especially a chunky one my favorite.

Any chance I could use the sun-dried tomatoes in a package instead of the oil-packed ones? I just so happen to have only the dried variety on hand and I bought a ridiculous amount of tomatoes at our farmer’s market yesterday and this recipe is calling my name today.

I made this recipe yesterday using the dry packaged sun-dried tomatoes instead of oil-packed ones. It worked really well! I rehydrated mine by pouring boiling water over them and letting them sit for about 10 minutes. I would have actually left them longer to soften them further, as they were a little tough to blend. But the sauce was really delicious.

Oh my gosh, I haven’t had sundried tomatoes in SO long! This sounds lovely! And awesome that you’re back in the recipe creation/cooking groove. It’s amazing (and kind of annoying) how the ideas can sometimes just dry up at the most inconvenient times, isn’t it!? As for fall cleaning, I’m totally the same way. It’s sort of like spring cleaning a few months too late, but I love doing it because I totally get that cleaning high that you described! I’m kind a sad that my summer clothes will be going away soon, but a closet clean-out always feels good too.

Delicious, I’m sure! I just went to Ikea (we have one about an hour and a half away in Sacramento) for the first time a couple of months ago on the way home from Napa Valley. We were there for hours and I wanted to buy everything!

Out of curiosity, what spiralizer do you have? I got a cheap-o one online and it broke after only a few months because I use it so much!! :/ Looking for a good brand that will last more than a few months!! =)

Your pasta sauce looks so thick and full of texture and I love tomatoes so I know I’d love this. And on spiralized zuke noodles. Haven’t broken out my spiralizer in far too long. Thanks for the inspiration to dust it off! Have loved all your Mofo posts this week!

I always make my own sauce, as taught by my Nana. Biggest secret? A tsp of sugar into the pot..it takes away the acidity of the tomatoes that some people struggle with. I suppose any sweetener (except chemical) would work. She always liked a smooth sauce so she pureed the tomatoes, celery, parsley in the blender first. I like a chunkier sauce so I use diced canned tomatoes or fresh..whatever i have on hand. I also sautee as many veggies as i have on hand…mushrooms…peppers…zucchini’s…eggplant…whatever..it’s very forgiving. I have even pureed broccoli and cauliflower and poured it in..also the white cannelini bean is divine in a tomato sauce and adds some protein…whole or pureed. You pick :0) We serve over spaghetti squash or wholegrain noodles :0) I often make a huge batch and morph it into lasagna too

I love your comment! I make sauces and groups and chilli’s much the same way. Good way to get rid of the last bits and pieces I have in the pantry. I have also never thought of adding a bean for a kick of protein. Do you leave them whole or puree it into the sauce?

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve have been needing a homemade sauce because we don’t eat store bought anymore. So many I’ve tried were just… yuck. This one looks amazing and I just happen to have some fresh vine tomatoes. AND you solved my pasta problem (as in, we don’t eat it) – I totally forgot about spaghetti squash or that I could julienne zucchini! This learning to cook a new way isn’t that easy without someone to guide you – thank you for being a guider!!

Angela, this tomato sauce recipe is incredible! I made it for dinner tonight and we loved it!!! I could not stop dipping spoons (clean of course) into it and eating it pure. The addition of the sun dried tomatoes makes it!
I love making my own tomato sauce and this will definitely be repeated many times around here.
Thanks for the amazing recipes, your blog is the best!!
Ana

I just wanted to take the time to reach out and say I think you’re amazing-Even better, you’re Canadian!!!! I’m a proud Canadian girl and I just love your simple, beautiful, down-to-earth style. I’m on the west coast, but if we lived in the same region, I’d want to hang out for sure:O) I love reading your blog and many of your recipes have become a mainstay in our home! I’m currently in the process of completing an M.A. in Counselling Psyc. as part of my goal to work with people with eating disorders. I’ve found that eating whole, organic, unprocessed foods has been beneficial in my own recovery. So THANK YOU!!!! for the work that you do. I so appreciate being able to access such amazing recipes and to share them with my family.

Love the idea of adding puréed sundries tomatoes! I’ve got a Costco bag of them I’ve been wondering how to use up.
I’m quite new to this vegan thing, and am looking to your blog quite frequently for recipe ideas. Everything is so good! Now that there’s things I can’t eat anymore though, they seem to be the things I crave. Two suggestions if you’re ever short on recipe ideas: vegan versions of fish tacos, and cauliflower crust pizza… I dream of these things!!!

I love making home made tomatoe sauce with slow roasted Roma tomatoes. I just slice them lengthwise, remove the seeds, drizzle them with olive oil and sometimes a little bit of very very good (read expensive but worth it!) balsamic vinegar. Put them cut side up in a single layer. I have been known to add onions and red pepper to this oven adventure also. When it’s all done, you can mash it a bit, blend some, or purée as you like depending on use. So delicious. Slow roasting your tomatoes makes them super sweet. No sugar ever required. Adding red peppers also boosts sweetness. Sometimes I slow sautée them separately till they are total mush and add them to the tomatoes after. When I make sauce for raw zucchini pasta, I put lots of raw basil, sundried tomatoes and olive oil in the food processor separately. I toss the noodles with this pesto sauce first and even keep leftovers in the fridge for extra meals. Cooked sauces can be warmed and added when you’re ready to eat so you can change up the experience. I personally prefer raw basil with my marinara so I rarely add basil until after. Plus, chopped basil on top looks gorgeous.
PS. If your sauce is bitter, it might be a couple of things. 1. Your tomatoes. Some varieties cook up sweeter than others. Field grown Roma tomatoes are the best (in my opinion). 2. Try cooking it more slowly. Cooking tomatoes on high heat and/or quickly brings out their bitterness. The best sauces ever are the simplest ones (onions, tomatoes) that simmer super slowly all day long. Buon apetito!

I totally agree on the sundried tomatoes. I’ve been putting them in my lasagna for years to intensify the tomato flavour, but never thought to put them in my spaghetti sauce (duh!) Thanks for a beautiful fresh recipe and for so many posts lately!

This was my very first attempt at making my own sauce. Ever. I had a ton of tomatoes, onions and basil from my latest CSA pickup and decided what the heck. Go for it! I did and it was 2 die 4. I put it on top of spaghetti squash and I was in food ecstasy.

Keep em coming. If your goal is to post 20 recipes in Sept, then mine will be to make them all. Had this for supper and it was delicious. Made your apple jam and served it over cooked oats for breakfast.

Had the pink detox smoothie for a snack today. The first few sips took a bit of adjusting but after that it was ok. Have to admit that it wasn’t a favourite but given how good it is for you I can see myself drinking it once in a while.

Hi Angela!
I came across your blog through Vegan Mofo listing and I am enjoying every bit of it! I am so inspired by your Thick & Chunky Tomato Sauce from Scratch:) Thank you for posting those beautiful recipes I am dying to be able to try them out when I am back from my voyages.

What a great recipe! I made it last night, adding in half a zucchini and red bell pepper that I still had in the fridge. I didn’t do the zucchini noodles, despite having bought a julienne peeler, because my husband turned out not to be a fan… I’m still working on that though!

My family and I absolutely loved this sauce. I used the dried sun-dried tomatoes and it worked perfectly. I doubled the recipe and the first night we had it over pasta and the second night we used it on pizza. Outstanding both ways! Thanks so much! I think I will be making it again this week.

This recipe was just what I needed, I have been making these quite boring pasta sauces for sometime now but today I made this and it tasted amazing. I’ve tried several recipes from your blog and I’ve liked them all but this is definitely my favorite! All thumbs up! :)

Made this tonight for dinner…..yum….. a definite keeper. Used fresh beefsteak and plum/roma tomatoes from the farmers’ market and different types of fresh oregano and basil from my herb garden. The sundried tomatoes added a nice depth and texture to the sauce. Really the only thing I added after doubling the recipe was about 2t of sugar. Thanks for posting your recipe (and the great picture… it looked so good I had to try it.)!

Had this tomato sauce with spaghetti squash (followed your post on how to bake one). Didn’t have fresh basil so added some of my mom’s canned pesto; added thyme instead of oregano. 1/4 tsp salt turned out to be too much for me so I had to compensate with a little honey. BUT all that done and said, this sauce was delish. Would love to try it to the T next time.

I tried this out tonight… It was my first time having zucchini ‘noodles’ and I have to say, both me and my guy LOVED them! In fact, we liked them better than pasta! Thank you for the delicious and healthy idea! I’m also really glad that I found another use for my mandoline! :)

sun dried tomatoes- great idea! am trying today with my own from this year’s great harvest. one thing i will do differently is use the whole tomatoes (seeds and all) because i just read last night in ‘On The Wild Side’ that the parts we usually toss away are actually the best for us- have the most lypocene etc.

I am so excited about trying this recipe! I actually have a spiralizer because I am gluten-free. I use the spiralizer for potatoes too, and it makes really good shoe-string fries!

I am excited to try this sauce mainly because my sauces are always a little too watery. They taste amazing and are so rich in flavor because I always use fresh basil, but I am excited to try to change up the texture. Thanks for posting this! I made a vodka sauce with lots of cheese and THAT sauce was the only thick sauce I have made.

I just made this sauce and am blown away by how good it is…. sometimes chunky is funky to me but man oh man this is delicious!! A quick question to anyone whos made this sauce before: how long does it hold in the fridge?

I’m new to this site and thought I’d try this recipe. OMG, this was absolutely delicious! It took a little getting used to the first few bites b/c we are so used to bottled spaghetti sauces, but the fresh and dried tomatoes made everything taste so much better. All fresh ingredients, and the pepper flakes gave it a little kick. I also added kidney beans to give it some protein. I used whole wheat spaghetti noodles instead of regular noodles. This is definitely a keeper!

I never ever imagined I would be able to cook something that would taste this amazing. I lived in Italy these past two years and genuinely think this sauce is every bit as delicious as what one would be served in Italy!

I just made this and it was delicious. I had it over some spaghetti squash. Do you happen to know the serving size for this as well as the calorie count per serving? Thanks so much for this amazing recipe!

Hi, just thought you’d like to know there’s a very annoying pop up add for ball park Angus beef burgers on this page which I was unable to get rid of to read your recipe. By the way love every recipe I have tried!

With my tomatoe harvest from summer, I made my own sun dried tomato powder in my vitamix by dehydrating and blending it in vitamix. Which omgod. … cuts down on how many tomatoes you have to store. And In sauces like this one, it is so easy to amp up the tomatoe flavour as well as help thicken the sauce.

Wow! It is amazing! I really mouthwatering to see the pictures. I have been following your blog pages for many years. I desire to cook all of your recipes, but mostly I tried your several recipe. I have a question Angela you said that when you made this you completely discard the seeds but can I use it without discard the tomato seeds? Please reply me and then I will definitely make to my family. I asked you a question some days ago but you did not answer me. Please don’t mind may be you cant’ read that. Thank you Angela for sharing this.

Nice sauce, with good tomato flavor. I used a mix of canned crushed tomatoes and fresh roma tomatoes, instead of 3 large tomatoes. I didn’t want to clean the food processor, so I minced the dried tomatoes really well before adding – I didn’t have a problem with that, plus the crushed tomatoes were already smooth. I changed the ordering of the ingredients a bit – delayed adding the garlic until the onion was slightly translucent to avoid burning it, and added the dried herbs to the sauce while it was still simmering, and reserved some of the

We ate with sauted kale, & barely sauted spiralized beets, carrots, and zucchni. It made for a really light summer meal. Next time I’ll definitely add a protein. Thank you!

YESSSSS!!!! THIS IS SOOO EASY AND IT TASTES AMAZING — says the person who always flubs up a recipe. I used canned organic tomatoes and it was done in a flash. I’m so happy I could dance in the streets!!! THANK YOU!